Floating while Pregnant

To understand how these benefits happen, one of the main things to remember is that we are floating on Epsom salt water. Epson salt is made up of magnesium and sulfate.

According to the Universal Health Institute, soaking in an Epsom Salt bath is one of the most effective means of taking in the magnesium your body needs. Supplemental calcium-magnesium is a popular remedy to many pregnancy problems. In fact, the hospital will sometimes administer a Magnesium-Sulfate IV to stop preterm labour.

Some of the benefits you will experience from floating while pregnant include:

Reduced Swelling:

Floating takes the pressure off your joints, which is in-it-self already a wonderful sensation. That reduction of pressure can also help reduce oedema or prevent swelling. Another popular remedy to reduce swelling is taking magnesium supplements; so floating is an awesome way to combine both treatments!

Lower Blood Pressure:

Blood pressure is closely related to stress levels, so it makes sense to think that the deep relaxation state you can achieve in the float tank could help lower it. But in addition to the relaxation, when your body is relieved from the burden of gravity your blood vessels can fully dilate, reducing blood pressure and increasing blood flow.

Reduce Stress:

Our always rushed, always busy culture leaves little time and space for self-care. It’s stressful! This applies to everyone, but especially if you’re already a mom it can be really hard to get just a few minutes of peace and quiet. The float tank is a cozy, quiet womb-like environment. You can forget about the pains and aches of living in your body. Since there is no sensations to process and nothing else to do except relax, your body needs to spend very little energy and everything slows down. There is no sense of time and meditation happens effortlessly.

Promotes Mom-Baby bonding:

As mentioned before, there is something very womb-like about the float tank. When you turn the lights off and allow your mind and body to drift into deep relaxation, you can often hear your own heartbeat and even your baby’s heartbeat. While listening to those sounds it’s easy to imagine the experience of the baby inside the uterus, which allows for a very special connection.

Listen to what media personality, TK Trussel says about her pregnancy and floating experience here.